Globe and Mail Housing Information About Toronto Real Estate Market Incorrect
On April 25, 2008 the Globe and Mail featured a two page spread showing average prices of homes in most neighbourhoods in the Greater Toronto Area. The information was provided to the newspaper by Realosophy, a blog website dedicated to providing Toronto real estate information.
According to the Globe, the information provided by Realosophy is based on “data mapping technology” developed by Realosophy itself.
At first glance, I thought there were significant differences in the information provided in the Globe and Mail and my own knowledge, which is based solely on the fact that I have my “finger on the pulse” and my twenty plus years selling homes in these neighbourhoods. Curious to find out about the discrepancies, I sat in front of my computer and double-checked the same areas the newspaper had quoted sales figures for.
I expected to find small variations primarily because many of these Toronto neighbourhoods are defined solely by real estate agents and the public. There are no official maps or boundary lines that clearly define the neighborhoods in Toronto. The closer I looked at the newspaper numbers the more I noticed serious discrepancies in prices.
Lets take a look at some examples:
Bennington Heights is a neighborhood with a small pocket of homes that are tucked away at the south west corner of Moore Avenue and Bayview. The Globes average sale price in 2006 is shown as $876,500. My figures show $834,200.
The Globes sale price for this neighbourhood in 2007 was $ 1,404,214. My figures show an average sale price of $1,168,816. or 17% less than the Globes stated average sale price.
I found major discrepancies in other neighborhoods as well, such as Davisville Village. In 2006 according to the Globe, the average sale price of a home was $476,423. Based on my detailed count made street-by-street and using Toronto Real Estate Board figures, the average for Davisville Village was $602,200. That is a whopping 21% percent higher than the Globe and Mail numbers.
In this same neighbourhood, the Globe shows an average sale price of $536,108 in 2007 and an average sale price of $495,553 in the first quarter of 2008. Using the same street-by-street method, my figures are radically different, with an average sale price of $703,214 for 2007 or 31% higher, and an average sale price of $689,776 in the first quarter of 2008, a 40% difference!
A word of caution! Can you depend on newspaper figures in an ever changing real estate market such as Torontos? In the past, many of us have grown used to relying on information such as that published by the Globe and Mail and other sources we consider to be reliable. Real estate prices can and do vary greatly on a weekly, monthly and quarterly basis. Changes in interest rates coupled with the varying supply of homes available in a given area can have a significant impact on both the up and down prices of homes.
Most newspapers simply can not react quickly enough to report on these changes. My suggestion is to use this information provided by the Globe and other sources, but only as a general guideline.A qualified professional who specializes in a particular neighbourhood will always be able to provide you with more accurate and relevant home pricing information than any printed source.
May 09, 2008 - I will be reviewing the average sale prices in other neighbourhoods as well as the changing price trends shortly.
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